


The New Kid Comes Out

by LovelyEnvy



Series: The Adventures Of New Kid [1]
Category: South Park
Genre: Angst and Humor, Canon-typical comedy, Crushes, F/M, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, References to Canon, South Park: The Fractured But Whole, South Park: The Stick of Truth, Spoilers, The Kids are a year older, The New Kid is a girl, Volleyball
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-11-04
Packaged: 2019-06-20 07:42:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15529446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LovelyEnvy/pseuds/LovelyEnvy
Summary: Despite the fact that she's lived in South Park for a year: no one knows New Kid is actually a girl (except for Wendy.) she is perfectly happy to keep it this way. At least that's what she tells herself.But now everything The New Kid tried to hide is at risk due to a series of events. Forcing her to face the consequences head on and in more ways then one.Plus she has a volleyball game to win.





	1. Girls and Fire Alarms

It was a sunny spring day and the playground was filled to the brim with south park elementarys fifth graders, all of which were spread out over the area, enjoying their recess. Some were chatting excitedly about their summer plans, and the eagerness (or dread) of them finally being in middle school next year.

The boys had been doing exactly that until Eric Cartman had stormed out of the principal’s office and started running his mouth.

“Look Kyle-“ Cartman raised his arms to create some form of shield between himself and the fuming boy slowly approaching him. “all I’m saying is that its pretty weak that you won’t own up to the fact that you pulled the fire alarm and knowingly let me take the fall for it.”

The New Kids blank eyes turned toward Kyle in preparation for his response. She had enough time to blink twice before the Jewish boy retaliated.

“Stop telling everyone I did it! you did it because you wanted to get out of class! Now you’re putting the blame on me because you don’t want go to detention!”

Stan glanced up from his phone just in time to see Kyle jab his finger into Cartmans chest.

“OH? Then why are you acting so defensive?”

Craig and Clyde passed a soccer ball between themselves. Token let out a long, annoyed sigh before drawing in the snow with a stick. Tweek dozed off.

“I’m NOT! You did it Cartman! You pulled it, you were found with blue dye on your hands, the janitor saw you trying to leave the school, and for fucks sake YOUR HANDS ARE STILL FUCKING BLUE!”.

Things were silent after Kyles outburst. The only sounds that could be heard was Kyles heavy breathing and Kenny’s snickering. Everyone was too distracted to notice the footsteps in the snow approaching. 

Slowly Cartman put his visibly blue hands in his pockets and cursed under his breath. He closed his eyes and inhaled before looking Kyle dead in the eye.

“I was framed.”

Kyle screamed.

Everyone was expecting him to continue this argument further (Some were even betting weather or not Kyle would just punch Cartman and get the whole ordeal over with already) but before he could, he was interrupted by someone loudly clearing their throat. Everyone’s heads turned to the source.

Wendy Testaburger stood across from the boys, casual and composed.

Ever since the whole “Mitch Conner incident™” the tension between the girls and boys have been slowly melting away. Probably due to the passage of time and help of Wendy defusing the situation on the girl’s end. So, at least for the moment; both parties can have civil conversations without the need to lunge at each other’s throats. If not, Wendy wouldn’t even be approaching them.

“I hate to interrupt but I need to borrow New kid.”

Wendy eyes locked on with The New kids, she gave her a sweet smile and gestured for her to come over. The New Kid did not exactly know how to reciprocate the gesture. By all means, she liked Wendy and even admired her to some extinct. But she knew too much of her for her to be comfortable with, and that reflected on her attitude around her: always cautious, always ready to defend.

She stood up hesitantly and brushed the snow off her pants, all without braking eye contact with the still smiling girl. She took several steps forward before someone grabbed two fistfuls of her hoodie and yanked her back.

“Be careful around this one, Kid” Cartman spoke in her ear, sending goosebumps down her spine. “The bitch is crazy.”

“Hey, stop saying shit about my girlfriend.” Said Stan.

“OH MY GOD CAN I GO SEVEN SECONDS WITHOUT BEING ATACKED!”

The New kid took this opportunity to slip out of Cartmans grasp and walk over to Wendy, who was glaring at the overweight boy. She opened her mouth and looked like she was about to say something but quickly decided against this and settled for letting out an annoyed huff.

She turned towards The New Kid and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Come on, lets go somewhere more private.”

She quickly glanced at Wendy’s hand, then her face. Her smile had returned. Although she does not want to admit it, it calmed her in the slightest.

As the duo began to walk away, Wendy turned her head and gave a little wave behind her without slowing her pace. “See you after school, Stan.”

The boys watched as they walked across the playground, dodging various activities and projectiles as Wendy led The New Kid to the school’s entrance. Even with the distance between them, they could see Wendy open the door for her. However, some of them had to squint to see Wendy narrow her eyes, suspiciously looked around the playground as if to make sure they weren’t followed, and slowly close the door behind her.

“Huh” Cartman hummed as he quizzically rubbed his chin, leaving blue stains on his pudgy face. The gears in his head turned, already calculating the worst-case scenario. His face twisted into a grimace. “Oh my god.”

“What.” Token asked more as a response then a question.

All the Boys exchanged puzzled glances as Cartman began to pace back and forth. He stopped and suddenly turned his back to the group and stared off into the sky, his eyebrows furrowed, and head tilted up. Giving off an odd sense of seriousness that only confused them further.

“The New Kid was not here when the war between us and the girls broke out.” He whirled around and lowered his voice. “He has not felt the pain we have and by extension; does not know what the girls are capable of.”

That once sentence burned. It brought up painful memories of how both sides acted like complete assholes during the gender war and it embarrassed the hell out of them. They felt shame for destroying everything that was precious to Cartman and being a part of a messy domino effect that let to things spiraling out of control between the boys and girls.

And don’t even get them started on Butters. Although he will be heroically remembered for turning the spark of male revolution into an uncontrollable forest fire (and almost getting in a fist fight with Nelly) He would probably be looking down and twiddling his thumbs at the memory of his past actions if he was there.

Yet at the same time, they still felt the sting of what the girls did. It still hurt to look back and remember how they left them grossly sobbing in the hall, only having each other for comfort. It banded them together and made them much more cautious when it came to women.

Cartman seeing that his words resonated with his audience, continued by pointing a fat, blue finger at the school’s entrance, right where Wendy and The New Kid disappeared through moments ago.

“I know we’ve all had our differences with Douchebag in the past but goddamnit he’s innocent.” He squeezed his eyes shut as if he were in pain. “And you can bet your bottom dollar the girls will take advantage of that.”

Stan shook his head, trying his best to not let Eric Cartmans words get to his head. “Dude, this is retarded. Things are ok with us and the girls now.”

“Are they Stan?” He leaned forward for emphasis. “Are they?”

“ **yes**. They are.” The black-haired boy raised his voice and inched closer to Cartman. He’s not looking for a fight, but he’d be damned if he just stood aside and let Cartman threaten the balance. He doesn’t have the will to go through another war, to go through the anger and heartache. The bottom line is that fighting each other got really fucking old really fast, so he can safely bet that he speaks for the other kids when he says he doesn’t want a repeat of past mistakes.

“That’s exactly what they want us to think. They make it seem like things are fine and dandy and then-“ Cartman lifted his foot and stomped on a pile of snow, crushing it under his sneaker. “BAM! They strike without warning.”

Craig picked at his nails, appearing to not have been paying attention to the conversation. “He’s just saying this stuff because he’s still butthurt Heidi Turner dumped him last year.”

A series of chuckles and smirks passed through the group. It always made everyone’s day a little brighter when they we’re reminded of Eric’s relationship failures, especially when they had the pleasure of watching his face and ears turn an angry beat red at the utter of the name ‘Heidi’.

“OK first of all **Craig** -“ he stuck out his thumb and pointed it at himself. “ **I** was the one who broke up with her. I want to get that cleared up with **everyone**.”

“That’s not how I remembered it, Fat ass”

“Shut. up. Jew.” He said through gritted teeth. He was at the end of his rope with these morons. “Second of all, I’m going to find out what the fuck is going on; weather you assholes help me or not-” He promised, glaring at each boy as he backed away slowly. “And I’ll show you, I’ll show all of you that the girls can’t be trusted when I save New Kid from their clutches before they can manipulate him into being their man slave.”

“Dude, I think your reading **way** too into this.”

But it was too late; The tomato faced boy with the blue hands had stormed off and none of them had any intention of going after him.

“God damn it.” Kyle sighed wile pinching the bridge of his nose.

“ACK- He’s going to get us k-killed.” Tweek’s eyebrow was twitching uncontrollably. “We c-can’t go through that shit again.”

“No one’s killing anyone. If he does do something, the girls are smart enough to figure out its just Cartman and not all of us.” Although completely monotone, Craig spoke logic everyone could agree with. It helped settle the nerves that some of them had in their gut.

Save for Clyde, who looked white as a sheet. He was sweating, and his breathing was a little too heavy to be normal. It was obvious Cartmans words had shook him to the very core. It terrified him to think that Bebe might be secretly conspiring against him, even if he had no such proof this was the case. But there was something even more pressing to him, something he knows the other guys will never admit out loud.

They are screwed if the girls somehow do convince The New Kid to turn on them. His dog like obedience and raw fighting skills are in a league of their own. And it’s not like he’s a stranger to infiltration either; he tricked the freedom Pals during their civil war, and Bebe even told him stories on how The New Kid snuck into an abortion clinic (by apparently disguising himself as a whore of some sort) and walked out with pictures of someone’s personal medical files **and never got caught**.

For all Clyde knows, they could have been paying him off this entire time. Maybe as far back as ‘The stick of Truth incident™.’

He shook his head, stopping that train of thought. He’s giving New Kid too much credit. Sure, he can fight and be shady but he’s no god. Clyde just needs to forget about all of this before it makes him paranoid. He however, couldn’t help but sneak in one last glance at the school’s door. For a brief second, his eyes narrowed, and the corner of his lip turned down in a moment of uncertainty. But then he blinked several times and quickly looked away, ignoring the door for the rest of recess.

Kenny noticed this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First fic out, finally. I've had this idea in my head for a while so i'm glad I can put it out. It'll help with my writing skills so constructive criticism is always welcomed. My goal is to tell the New Kids story while still keeping the shows overall vibe. Lets see where this goes :)
> 
> ~LovelyEnvy


	2. Remembrance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The New Kid hears Wendy out. It reminded her of some things.

During the Mitch Conner incident one year ago, Wendy had said something that had caught her off guard.

**“I’ve known you were a girl since the day you moved here, New Kid. Why do you lead everyone to believe you’re a boy?”**

At the time, The New Kid did have an answer for Wendy’s question. It was rehearsed, half-assed, and would never be said out loud; but it made sense to her. A sort of practical truth. She told her-self that the less people knew about her; the harder it would be for **_them_** to find her. So she wouldn’t correct anyone and let them assumed what they wanted. Let them create her disguise for her.

And it worked for a few months. No one knew who she was, noir did they seem to care. They stopped asking for her name and called her New Kid or Douchebag instead. Everything was going according to plan, she was hiding in plain sight.

But something felt wrong. Something about day to day life felt odd.

It was like an itch she couldn’t scratch, something that was always on the surface. Whenever she managed to shove it out of her mind it would always come pushing back with more force. As time passed this feeling was ever-present, annoying.  She wanted it to stop but didn’t know to make it. Why did it bother her so much? Why should she loose sleep because of this?

New Kid thought back to Wendy’s question all those months ago, she wondered what was it about that damn question that had left a bad feeling in her stomach? Maybe it was Wendy herself? Its true that Wendy knowing she was a girl made her uneasy, not to mention that New Kid has no idea how she found out. She has a boys hair cut and only wears pants and hoodies so its not like she comes off a girl. She also avoids doing anything particularly girly and usually just does whatever the boys are doing-

Then it hit her.

It was because people liked the person she was masquerading as. They were friends with The New Kid, not her. The person they have known for the past year was a big elaborate lie.

She thought she would feel sweet relief for finally finding an answer, but instead she felt the opposite; a mess of emotions that pulsed in her head.

At first she mainly felt sadness. _‘I’m not being honest to everyone.’_ The New Kid thought. ‘ _I’ve backed myself into a corner.’_

A part of that sadness molded itself into defiance; her usual nee-jerk reaction to dealing with these kinds of things. ‘ _why should I care what they think? I have more important crap to deal with.’_ She would repeat over and over as a form of reassurance.

But then she’ll remember.

_an image of herself flashed across her thoughts. She’s a year younger; hair still cut closely to the head, slightly shorter, and wearing squire armor. Her expression is twitching in agony, yet she tries not to think about the pain and instead focuses on glaring down the elf that had just based her against the face with a wooden sword. Suddenly, a gloved hand gently patted her cheek, wiping away a smeared mix of blood and war paint. Her head jolted to the side, meeting Butters worried gaze. She watched with wide eyes as he took a band-aid out of his pocket and stuck it on her cheek. “There you go Buddy.” He chirped with a toothy smile, giving the band-aid one more rub over before turning toward his elven foes and unsheathing his hammer. She was left with a funny feeling in her chest, wondering why he did that when she didn’t even ask him to._

Right, that’s why- that’s exactly why she does this. Its little moments like that. And because of it, she can tell her self what ever she wants, but in the end: she cares about what they think. She wants them to like her for her.

Yet she doesn’t want things to change. It’s a paradox.

Wendy had stopped in her tracks, so The New Kid did the same. A quick glance up told her that she had been led to the gym. The echoes of skidding sneakers and yelling could be heard from within, evident that some kind of practice was going on inside. The New Kid was somewhat taken back. She didn’t even know people used the gym during recess.

“The reason I brought you here is because I need your help.” Wendy sighed and leaned against the wall. “but I want you to know that you were the last person I wanted to drag into this.”

The New Kid raised her brows at this. Although she was pleasantly surprised at Wendy’s sincerity she managed to keep the rest of her face neutral.

“yesterday Bebe sprained her wrist her wrist during volleyball practice.” She explained. “It was a pretty bad one; the doctor said it’ll take a week or two to heal. Problem is the playoffs are this Friday and we’re short one player.”

She didn’t like where this was going.

“Coach said that unless we find a replacement we’ll have to forfeit the match.” Wendy’s eyes trailed to the ground as her lips tilted into a frown, her fist clenched at her sides.

“I’ve asked every other girl in our grade but all I’ve gotten was: I’m not good at sports, I’ve got homework, I’ve got a date-” She scoffed. “Bullshit excuse after bullshit excuse.”

The New kid could sympathize. It must be pretty discouraging to be rejected over and over like that, but this is way too fucking risky. It’ll be pretty suspicious for a “boy” to play on a girls volley ball team.  

“Now I know what your thinking” Wendy said, apparently reading her mind. “you don’t have to worry about that. No one shows up to our games anyways, so your secret is safe.”

The pink clad girl sounded a little sad when she said that last part. She was feeling more compelled to help when she knows she should be looking out for herself. Screw her bleeding heart, screw it to hell. She can’t be a sheep, she has to step up and tell this girl sorry, but no.

“I don’t know what exactly you’d be risking by helping us, I really don’t. I still don’t understand why you do-“ She glanced at the New Kid from head to toe. “-This. But to be frank: We’re desperate. We’ve worked so hard to keep this team running when no one gave a shit about us and I’ll be damned if I let it end like this.”

Wendy’s calm exterior was slipping hard; there was bitterness and anger laced with her words. Clearly this means a great deal to her but just like how Wendy couldn’t understand her reasons for pretending to be a boy: she can’t understand her passion for volleyball of all things. But she knows she has her reasons, so Wendy must have her own. New Kid sighed, figuring that she made an unconscious decision without realizing it.

“Come on, Help us out. We’ll owe you a favor, a big one.” Wendy continued to plead. New kid had tried to avoid eye contact, but she risked a glance and her eyes meet Wendy’s big, brown ones. They usually held so much pride within them; to be reduced to begging, puppy eyes seemed so unfitting of the girl. It made her realize just how much she let her guard down. She must really trust her.

_They both stood at across the street from park, catching their breath. The two of them were just about to head out to D-Mobile to fix Wendy’s phone problem when an unusually aggressive homeless guy stumbled over to them, itching for a fight. New Kid knew she could have easily beat the living shit out of him, but they both knew there we’re more important matters to deal with, so she grabbed Call Girl’s wrist and made a run for it but damn that creep had long legs. They finally lost him when they crossed the road. After a brief pause they were back on track._

_“Hey, Girlfriend. “ Call Girl said while they we’re walking. The New Kid gave her a strange look, confused from the friendly nickname. She took a multi colored object out of one of her many pockets. “This bracelet was forged out of the bond of friendship.”_

_The New Kid’s eyes were wide and her lips we’re parted as Wendy placed the string of plastic beads in her hand. The masked girl laughed a little at her reaction. “ **it’ll give you strength**.”_

_She composed herself and silently slipped the bracelet around her wrist._

For some reason she really trusts her.

Meanwhile, Wendy was a little bit panicked at this point. “I don’t know what else to do, I just don’t want to let the team down and-“

She brought a finger to her mouth. “SHH!”

That quickly shut her up. The girl closed her lips and blinked. Shocked that some form of vocalization came out of The New Kids throat. She cocked an eyebrow. “What?” She closed and opened her mouth. “What does that mean?”

The New Kid let out a puff of air and looked away, a faint pink dusted her cheeks. She nodded once and only once but that seemed enough to get her idea across because almost immediately a huge smile stretched across Wendy’s face. She let out a high-pitched squeal (That scared the shit out of her) and suddenly threw her arms around her waist.

Oh. Ok. Touching. She’s stiff and doesn’t know what to do. But it’s not bad, it’s weird, and warm, and above all **nice**. Slowly, she reached out and placed her arms around Wendy’s shoulders, giving them a tiny squeeze. She really hopes that wasn’t awkward because she honestly doesn’t want to fuck this moment up.

“Thank you” She whispered. “You’re a really good friend, New Kid.”

Everything stopped. Did she hear that right? Friends? She and Wendy we’re truly friends? Its so strange to hear it out loud, to be thanked for it. She never thought she would have someone that knew the truth and still wanted to be friend with her, the **real her**. She could feel her heart beating, her chest felt warm, she was smiling. It was small, but it was genuine.

She was so, beautifully happy.

They detangled themselves after a little while; The New Kid’s shy smile still contrasting Wendy’s grin. Both shining in the afterglow of their kindled friendship.

“Alright” She finally said. “let’s do this.” With a skip in her step she made her way towards the gym door with New Kid right behind her. She was about to push the door open when she looked over her shoulder.

“By the way; we’re going to have to tell Coach, Bebe, and the rest of the team you a girl if we want this to work.” She winked. “Hope that won’t be too much trouble.”

**Shit.**

New Kid was frozen in place as Wendy swung open the door, announcing their grand entrance. She immediately noticed several familiar faces turn to look at her shrinking behind Wendy’s confident form.

After several seconds of silence Bebe was the first one to speak up. “Wendy why the fuck is the New Kid here?”

The New Kid was wondering the exact same thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew! Another chapter out and about


	3. Unfair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things didn't turn out how The New Kid expected them to.

The New Kid likes to think that she’s a calm person, sometimes inappropriately so. She once stared blankly at Scott Malkinsons corps and another time she gave Randy Marsh an abortion at gunpoint without so much as batting an eye. Countless times people have commented on her dull, monotone nature.

Yet when Wendy turned around and whispered to her “Last chance, you ok with this?” she nearly pissed herself.

New Kid was finding it a little hard to breath. She wasn’t ok with this and she knew it. But Wendy called her friend and that alone meant so much to her. She helped her during the Mitch Connor incident, she kept her secret, and she was even considerate enough to offer her a last minute way out for Christ sake. She puts so much trust in her, its only fair she gives some back.

So New Kid pressed her lips together and nodded, giving Wendy consent to spill the secret she’s spent a year building.

Her shoes suddenly became the most interesting thing in the world as Wendy explained to Bebe, Annie, Nicole, Red, and Lola why she was here. Until eventually, Wendy spoke the words “The New Kid is a girl.” It was then that she dared to look up. A million scenarios were rushing through her head, however the one thing she didn’t expect was Red letting out a frustrated cry as she stomped her foot and handed Annie a fat twenty-dollar bill.

  _Oh my fucking god did that really just happen?_ Her eyes nearly popped out of her skull as the blond girl yelled out “I knew it!” as she proceeded to wave the bill in the air, giddy with victory. The New Kid leaned forward in disbelief, her mouth parted open. She looked at Wendy, who appeared to be just as stunned as she was.

“Really Annie? You knew?” she said with a tilt of her head.

“yeah, apparently.” Red huffed, bitter over the lost of her twenty. “We’ve been debating this over a couple months now, but I guess she was right.” Red paused for a few seconds before she looked New Kid up and down with a look of realization. “Oh my God she was right.”

A couple months? If New Kid’s eyes could open any wider they would.

“But how did you figure it out?” Nicole finally pipped in. “He, I mean, she looks like a boy to me. Honestly, I’m still trying to wrap my head around this.”

Annie raised her brows, seemingly surprised. “Really? You can’t say she doesn’t look a little feminine.” She gestured to New Kid, who felt as if her ribcage was squeezing her lungs. Discomfort and eyes roamed her person.

“No, not really.”

“Yeah I don’t see it either.” Bebe agreed, giving her a glance over.

“But she smells way to nice to be a guy, and just look at how long her eye lashes are.” She insisted. The other girl’s face’s turned from confusion into interest, Nicole gestured for Annie to continue.

 “I guess I really started to suspect it when she grew her hair out; I thought it made her look more cute then handsome.” She saw New Kid’s face and coughed. “No offence, if that offends you.”

_None taken_ she thought as the pit in her stomach grew heavier.

Bebe let out a curious hum. “Now that you mention it, the way her hair frames her face is kind of pretty.

She brushed her brown curls back in disbelief, refusing to believe it was one of the things that gave her away. She just wanted to grow it out a little, it barley grazes the back of her neck. For fucks sake; Tweels hair is twice as long and no one calls him pretty.

OK, she takes that back. She’s heard Craig call him pretty once or twice but that’s just Craig.

But Shit if Annie was able to tell from such small indicators then who else is? Her next swallow was thick. Paranoia beginning to sink in. This - five people - was already too much, she’s not ready for the rest of the world to know and she doesn’t know if she’ll ever be. After all, she’s spent a lifetime learning that the truth could mean another hasty move.

She sighed, running her fingers through her (apparently) too long hair. South park has been her first home in a long while. She doesn’t want to lose it, one way or another.

A small voice broke her away from her brooding thoughts.

“W-wait”

Everyone’s heads turned to meet the glassy eyes of Lola, who had been oddly quiet during the entirety of the exchange. Her freckled face was flushed, shakily she pointed a trembling finger at New Kid.

“This is all a joke, right?” Her eyes darted between the faces surrounding her, searching for the slip of a smile, a chuckle, anything. “C’mon guys this isn’t funny.”

New Kid’s eyes narrowed in the slightest. Something was wrong. Lola’s eyes were too watery, her voice too shaky. The other girls quickly noticed this too, judging by the way their faces visibly sunk.

“Oh shit.” Bebe hissed a little too loudly. Red quickly shushed her, looking around to see if Lola had heard but instead caught New Kid watching the exchange. The red head bit her lip before breaking eye contact.

The New Kid blinked. What’s happening right now?

“I’m really sorry Lola.” Wendy took a step forward, the burnets head snapped towards her direction. “But it’s true, I meant every word I said.” Although her face carried sympathy, her words held their weight. New Kid tilted her head back, confused as to why Wendy was apologizing specifically to Lola. Come to think of it, everyone’s behavior has been off ever since the girl spoke up, as if they were tip toeing around something.

Lola bristled “You mean to tell me that you knew this whole time and you didn’t say anything to me?” her voice raised. “Even after everything I spilled to you?”

“You have to understand that it wasn’t my place to tell-“

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!” She suddenly shrieked, her cry amplified by echoing off the gym walls.  It caused the other occupants to jolt, however New Kid stood with tense shoulders, trying her hardest to steady her breathing. Her infamous poker face replacing any fear she was unwilling to show.

Lola’s eye shifted to Annie. The blond flinching under her furious gaze “And YOU! If you thought New Kid was a girl, why didn’t you say anything to me-“ She stuttered. “us. The girls.”

Annie raised her hands in defense. “You know how some of the other girls feel about him - I mean - her. If I said anything, they would think I was trash talking. It would have caused anarchy.”

Bebe placed a hand on Annie’s shoulder in understanding. “It would not have sparkled.”

“But its not fair!” Lola snapped once more, her nose was red, tears threatened to spill out of the corners of her eyes. She had a white-knuckle grip over her heart, as if the organ was seconds away from bursting. Hell, from they way she looked it probably was.

What was warranting this anger? Why was she taking this so hard?

Her mind went blank when suddenly those bloodshot grey eyes were glued on to her own and New Kid found herself struggling to keep eye contact. Yet she was frozen, finding it wrong to look away as Lola’s bottom lip trembled. “Why did you lie to everyone?”

_Fuck_ was her first thought. Cold adrenaline rushed up her spine as if someone had just threatened her. _Lied?_ She thought. It sounds so nasty when the word lied is used. So much more scandalous. Lying implies that she had the option to tell the truth. If not her gender: it would have been her race, her age, whatever everyone thought she was; she would of became.

“ANSWER ME!” Red hot tears streaked her face. The girl took several steps forward, still glaring into New Kid’s blank eyes.

She hates it. She’s so fucking sick of pretending to be something she’s not. No one knows how tiering it is to completely change your identity with every move, to act like who you are doesn’t exist. The New Kid would rather have no one know her name then make one up for the hundredth time.

Lola thinks her situation is unfair? Her life is the motherfucking dictionary definition of unfair.

“Ok, lets just take a breath and chill for a second.” Wendy approached the fuming girl but Lola was not having it. She jumped away as if Wendy was some kind of disease.

“You of all people can’t tell me to fucking chill.” She sobbed. “You knew how I felt and yet you said nothing. What kind of shitty person does that?”

“Do you really think I would hurt you on purpose?”

For a moment Lola wilted; her brows raised, and her shoulders lowered. She knew the answer to that question but said answer didn’t agree with her anger. So she quickly shook her head and frowned once more. “Screw this. If you think I’m going to stay quiet your dead wrong.” 

New Kid’s heart lodged in her throat when she saw Lola march towards the gym exit. Her mind went blank and her legs moved on their own. She practically tripped over herself to get behind Lola and grab her by the wrist. The burnets head whipped around with fire in her wet eyes, daring New Kid to try something.

_Now what?_ She hadn’t really thought this far, or at all for that matter. The only thing that was processing in her head was _no no no no no_ over and over again. She needs to do something, anything to convince Lola to keep her secret. But all she can hear was _no no no._

“What the hell? Let go!” Lola snarled while attempting to tug her way towards the gym doors. New Kid’s feet skidded on the polished wood floor, yet she kept a firm hold on her wrist, unwilling to give the squirming girl a chance to break free.

The sight would have been rather comedic if it wasn’t for the context of the situation. It instead made the other girls confused as to how they should react to the disaster unfolding in front of them.

“Uh, New Kid really doesn’t want you to tell anyone.” Red piped while scratching the back of her neck. She glanced at Nicole, who threw her hands up and mouthed ‘I don’t know.’

“I. can. see. that.” Lola said through gritted teeth. Her other hand was now on The New kid’s shoulder, pushing in an attempting to shove her away. In response New Kid added a second hand to Lola’s wrist and hung on tighter.

Bebe had to side step out of the way in order to avoid the two as they tumbled past her, protectively holding her injured wrist to her chest. “Just stop, you guys are acting like little kids.”

_I don’t know what else to do_ She thought pitifully.

Lola let out a sharp yell as she reared her leg back and slammed her heel down on New Kids toes. She yelped, the pain distracting her enough for her to loosen her grip, that’s all Lola needed to yank her arm back and sprint away. Her eyes widened in horror when she realized she was no longer holding the girl’s wrist.

_no no no no no no please no_

“WAIT WAIT! JUST WAIT!”

Lola stopped. Her hands were on the door, twitching to push it open. Slowly she looked over her shoulder while panting and sniffling, meeting Wendy’s stern gaze.

“I was the one who asked her to be here. I was the one who asked her to take the risk.” She gave New Kid a side glance, her brown eyes softening in the slightest. “I’m really sorry your feelings we’re hurt but it wouldn’t be fair for you to do this to her when I was the one who asked her to help us.”

“But-“

Wendy didn’t let her finish. “Look at how she’s acting, Lola! For whatever reason it may be: this secret really means a lot to her!” It was subtle, but New Kid could see Wendy square her shoulders and tilt her head up. It’s a reflex; sometimes she catches the boys doing it before a fight. “And you’re going tell everyone why? Because your angry?”

“No that’s not it,” She sounded as if she was trying to convince herself. “there’s other girls who feel the same way I do, they need to know!”

“I understand, but its not your secret to tell. Its New Kids”

Silence quickly filled the room; she had hit the nail on the head. Lola’s face was stuck with a permanent slack expression as her eyes attempted to look at everything but Wendy. All the anger she held earlier had dissolved into nothing, now she looked like a cornered animal. In her endeavor to avoid Wendy’s face, her puffy eyes met her own. They didn’t move after that, as if they we’re both searching for the determining factor in the other’s eyes. The next step.

She can’t freeze up this time, this is her argument: she needs to contribute to it.

So she began walking towards Lola without breaking eye contact, determined to fight her own battles, determined to do something. New Kid stopped when she could see the details of Lola’s face; her freckles, the roundness of her nose, the mole under her cheekbone. New kid would even call her pretty if she wasn’t covered in tears and snot at the moment.

_Please_ she mouthed. Hoping Lola could read her lips. She softened her eyes, subtly but just enough to let out a slip of emotion and just enough to get a reaction out of the girl, who looked baffled because _holy shit_ New Kid was trying to talk to her.

Well- sort of.

Her lashes fluttered, forcing a few stray tears to leak out. “I-I’m not ok with this,” She stuttered.

She kept staring, puffing out her bottom lip in the slightest. Lola became more flustered.

“d-don’t look at me l-like that!”

If she convinced Eric Cartman of all people with this she can do it on Lola. Although she’s pretty sure Eric was just bullshitting her. She’s actually never done a puppy face on purpose, but she figures that if she can do it unintentionally she can do it again. Intentionally.

So she tilted her head. And for a moment; something happened to Lola’s face that she couldn’t name. pink spread across her face like wildfire, her eyes glinted, and her mouth parted open to let out a breath before closing and opening again. She looked dumbstruck.

“Fine!” she said while throwing her hands up, her nameless expression vanishing almost as quickly as it appeared. “I hate this, but I’ll shut up about it for now.” Her eyes lingered on New Kid’s as she cracked the door open. For a moment her adrenalin shot up again, expecting Lola to bolt out now that her guard was down, but instead the girl remained in place. Weighing her next words.

“Out of all the boys in South Park why did I have to like you?”

New Kid tensed. It was like a flip had been switched, it all made sense now: the reactions, the anger, the tears. It made her feel stupid that she didn’t put two and two together sooner. She immediately felt her face heat up, she never dealt with someone having a crush on her before and had absolutely no idea how to respond to it.

She felt a pang as she watched Lola walk out of the gym while scrubbing tears off her face. She made a move to go after her but a hand on her shoulder stopped her.

“Just give her some space, Kid.” Wendy sighed. “besides, we’ve got some stuff to figure out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a dozy. I had to re-write it several times before I finally got something I liked. Anywho, hope you enjoyed :)


	4. Trial and Error

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After careful consideration, she decided that her best option was sprinting off in a random direction.
> 
> So that’s what she did.

“Heads Up!” Nicole yelled as the ball went over the net and hurdled towards her. The New Kid instantly went scrambling despite the protest in her leg muscles. Locking her fists together and angling her body just like how Bebe taught her to. She could hear the blond cheer from the sidelines.

“Yeah! You got it New Kid!” She cheered while pumping her uninjured fist in the air.

 She bit her lip as she smiled, the encouragement had sent a burst of confidence through her veins. She can do it this time, she can feel it. She planted her foot firmly on the ground and reared her conjoined fists back, swinging with all her might, and hitting nothing but air.

The ball smacked her square in the face.

A series of yelps and shrieks emitted from the girls as they watched The New Kid fall on her ass, clutching her gushing nose. They rushed to circle around her, panicked by the line of blood that was already dripping down her arm.

“Oh my god I’m so sorry!” Nicole apologized while crouching down next to her. “I shouldn’t have hit it so hard!” New Kid was about to wave her off but immediately reconsidered this when she cringed from the familiar taste of metal.

_Fuck_ she was biting her lip when the ball hit her, she realized as she reluctantly swallowed. She tested the waters by crinkling her mouth, stopping when she was met with a sharp pain on the corner of her bottom lip.

“Someone get a towel!” Wendy ordered as she reached out to grab New Kid’s wrists and gently pry them away. New Kid frowned as Wendy examined the damage, judging by the way she winced: it didn’t look good. “Your nose is bleeding but other then that it looks fine, your lip on the other hand,” She exhaled. “Your lip is kinda fucked up.”

Annie appeared next to Wendy holding a towel, she took one look at New Kid and screamed. “Ew ew ew ew ew that’s so gross!”

“Jesus, calm down!” Red shot. “It’s just blood.”

“But its all over her face!”

Wendy rolled her eyes, picking up the towel and handing it to New Kid. She gave her a grateful nod before taking it and pinching her nose while using her other hand to press the cloth against her mouth. She leaned back and sighed, feeling what she hoped was sweat trickle down her back.

She never went back to recess, or class, or the class after that. Red would show up instead, handing the teacher a note vaguely explaining that coach needed for practice. None of them cared that the coach’s signature on the note was clearly forged so she was able to spend the rest of her day learning the basics. New Kid was exhausted, sweaty, and bleeding; yet she doesn’t have anything to show for it. She wasn’t even able to hit the damn ball over the net _once_.

The New Kid’s eyes drifted to gym exit and immediately felt her gut clench. Things we’re already difficult enough as it is, and her frustrations definitely weren’t mixing well with her pre-existing stress. To be blunt: she feels like a piece of shit. Her secret has been out for a couple hours and its already broken a girl’s heart and possibly destroyed a friendship. The cherry on top is that she can’t hit a fucking ball straight.

“You ok?” Nicole asked after several seconds of silence. The New Kid shrugged, her eyes trailing down and focusing on a scuff on the floor. She was ok with the fact that she got injured, after all she gets hurt all the time. Cuts, pepper spray, fights, you name it: she can deal with it. But this? This is different from a punch to the face, at least a punch to the face has a simple solution: beating the living shit out of said hypothetical person who punched her.

In that scenario New kid is the only one getting hurt. Now Lola is probably crying in some bathroom stall because of her.

And that’s what she’s not ok with.

“you know you shouldn’t beat yourself up,” Annie said while shielding her eyes. “I sucked the first time I played volleyball too.”

Curiously, New kid looked up to meet the worried gazes of the girls crowding her. They seemed to have inched closer from their original positions.

“Yeah its not like we were prepared for any of this, we didn’t even have a uniform for you.” Bebe added while scratching the back of her head. The girl had left her uniform at home, thinking she wouldn’t have a need for it. She promised she would bring it tomorrow when they realized New Kid would have to settle for playing in jeans.

“We could have used Lola’s if she bothered to tell us she didn’t want to play.” Red said with a slight hint of concern hidden under her bitter tone. She glanced at the door as if she expected Lola to walk in on que.

Wendy shook her head. “Lola has a lot on her mind right now.”

_‘That’s my fault.’_ New Kid added as an afterthought.

“I get that but still,” she crossed her arms. “It’s not ok for her to skip practice this close to the playoffs.”

Wendy nodded but remained silent. Her eyes seemed distant as she reached out and peeled the towel off her face, New kid winced when she felt the fibers brush against her lip. She stuck out her tongue and licked around the affected area, finding that it was still bloody and beginning to swell. She frowned. How was she going to explain this?

“We should get you cleaned up,” Wendy said while handing her a clean side of the red stained towel. “School is almost over anyways, so you better hurry if you want to catch the bus.”

She sucked in a breath and just like that: she was smiling. It made New Kid stare from how fake it was. Her hand twitched, compelled to reach out, to somehow ask if she was ok. _‘I understand’_ was what she wanted to say. _‘It blows when you have to pretend.’_

“Oh! I can help her.” Nicole offered. She wrapped her hands around New Kids arms and gently rubbed them as they both stood up. It shocked her right out of her pity party and made her as stiff as a brick. One thing New Kid noticed about the girls was that they tended to be a lot more touchy feely then the boys (With some exceptions like Butters or Kenny.) She hasn’t decided if she likes it or not but she’s definitely not used to it, judging by the way her skin prickles whenever Nicole’s hand rubs against her bare arms.

they walked over to the bleachers where her stuff had been thrown lazily during the beginning of practice. She swung her bag over her shoulder and reached out to grab her hoodie but found that it was already in Nicole’s hands. New kid raised her brows.

She smiled. “I can hold this for you.”

Blinking, she stared at the girl. _‘That was sweet’_ she thought pleasantly. It was a nice little gesture to distract her from the mess of feelings that we’re sloshing inside her head, a small ray of sunlight. However, her thoughts failed to transfer into an appropriate expression, causing Nicole to stutter.

“I-If you want to that is.” She said while fumbling with the red cloth in her hands. New Kid internally cursed at herself when she realized her mistake and quickly turned up the corners of her mouth, hoping this was enough to reassure the dark-skinned girl. Damn, she so used to the boys understanding her blank expressions that she forgets other people are not used to it. She should really watch out for that if she’s going to be working with these girls for the next couple days.

Nicole hesitantly returned her smile and draped the hoodie over her arm as they returned to the group, where they seemed to be whispering to each other as they hovered in front of the locker room.

_‘Probably talking about how much I suck.’_ New Kid mused. She stand corrected when she faintly heard the word ‘Lola’ thrown around. To bad the conversation ended before she was close enough to listen in.

“See you tomorrow, Kid.” Annie waved as she disappeared into the locker room. “And thanks a bunch for helping us.”

Bebe gave New Kid’s shoulder a small squeeze as she passed by. “Yeah, seriously. We owe you big time.”

Red lingered a moment before she said her goodbye, giving New Kid a tired look. “Sorry this turned into an episode straight out of reality TV.”

Nicole snorted. “Was it at least a good episode?”

“Meh.”

Tilting her head, she watched as Red disappeared into the locker room before turning to Wendy. The girl looked a little worse for the wear with her sweat stained uniform, frizzy hair and fake smile; Stress hung on the corner of her eyes and her overall posture was less bright then it was in the beginning of practice.

“Thank you for today, I mean it.” She said while stepping closer. “What your doing means a lot to me, especially considering all the shit that went down earlier.” A loud sigh escaped from her lips, momentarily she averted her gaze and shot a look at the door before shifting her gaze to stare directly into New Kid’s brown eyes. Her false smile was gone and replaced with a look of seriousness, making The New Kid blink from her sudden shift in tone.

“A lot of people would have walked out of this mess and save themselves the trouble.” She paced a hand on her shoulder and squeezed as a tiny smile graced her features. “It makes me glad you’re not like other people.”

A Smile broke out on New Kid’s face before she could even think of masking it for whatever reason. That felt _really_ good to hear. It made her feel fuzzy and pleasant and it reminded her why she was in this for the long run: because Wendy knew who she was, and she liked her for it. She felt like butterfly’s were in her stomach and she couldn’t even hide it if she tried.  

Nicole and Wendy watched in awe as New kid grinned, teeth and all; for the first time in South Park history.

 

 

The two of them walked through the empty hallway, searching for the nearest bathroom. Nicole worriedly suggested that maybe New Kid should go see the nurse, but she waved it off with a small, relaxed smile on her face. Her mood had significantly improved since her conversation with Wendy. Her incident with Lola had been shoved into the back of her mind and she couldn’t even bring herself to care that her lip was swollen and stinging like a bitch. Nope that didn’t hurt. Pain? What pain? She’s to distracted by todays events to worry about pain.

New Kid found herself wondering what else she can do with her day. She definitely needs to take a bath when she gets home, but maybe she can treat her self a bubble bath? She liked the idea of being surrounded by warm water and suds, especially after a long day of physical activities. After that she could text Butters and see if he’s up for talking about their hero personas. The duo has notebooks filled to the brim with ideas and drawings about their alter egos. They enjoy brainstorming about their characters and it’s one of New Kid’s favorite pastimes. ‘ _That would be a great way to end the day.’_ She thought warmly.

Her good mood was apparently infectious, because pretty soon Nicole was giving her side glances and sporting her own smile.

“Man, I’m relieved that you’re feeling better, but I just wanted to apologies again, I really didn’t mean to hit you so hard.” She said sincerely. “You really had me worried for a second, and Annie definitely wasn’t expecting that much blood.” She shook her head with a chuckle.

New Kid nodded, agreeing that the girl has quite the phobia of blood. Her smile widened, eager to show Nicole that all is forgiven. It really wasn’t the girl’s fault but its endearing to see that she’s worried about it.  

“I know it must have hurt a lot more then you make it seem, so I’m just glad there’s no hard feelings or anything.” She said while scratching the back of her neck. “I would hate for us to get off on the wrong foot when we just started and all.”

“Uh, excuse me?” Came a voice from behind them.

Both Nicole and New Kid lurched to a halt, a simultaneous _‘Oh Shit’_ running through their heads. New Kid ducked her head down, hoping that the hair framing her face is enough for her to hide her injuries as she stared at her sneakers with wide eye. She shot shaky glances at Nicole, who look mortified. The dark-skinned girl swallowed thickly and slowly looked over her shoulder to make eye contact with the hooded boy behind her.  

“Y-yes?” She squeaked.

Kenny narrowed his eyes. “Correct me if I’m wrong but did I just hear you say that you hit him?”

_‘Fuck, oh shit. Come on play it off.’_ She squeezed her eyes shut and prayed Nicole was good at improvising. They can still fix this if they play their cards right, they just need to act natural-

“Yeah – I mean – Maybe?” Was her strangled reply.

**_Fuck, abort._ **

 Silence followed immediately after as New Kid’s good mood proceeded to backflip its way off a cliff.

“Oh.” Kenny just stared at them with a cocked eyebrow, glancing between her and Nicole’s shrinking form with a mix of confusion and concern plastered on his face. His lips pressed into a thin line.

This is bad, very bad. She should have just washed off in the locker room, who cares if she didn’t have a change of clothes or if she missed the bus, either of those things are better then this scenario. _Fuck_ she was careless, but she can scold herself later, right now they needed an exit strategy and they need it fast. After careful consideration, she decided that her best option was sprinting off in a random direction.

So that’s what she did.

“HEY!” He yelled and took off after her, running past a baffled looking Nicole. “NEW KID WHAT THE FUCK?!”

“Nicetalkingtoyou!” She slurred while running back towards the gym with her face buried in her hands. She yelped and slammed right into a trashcan, spilling its contents, and letting out a strangled cry before fleeing the crime scene.

New Kid didn’t dare look back to watch this unfold, not while she can hear Kenny hot on her heels. _‘He won’t leave without Karen,’_ She formulated while willing herself to run faster. _‘so, if I leave the school and run towards home he won’t follow me.’_   It was decided, her plan set in motion. If she was going to escape she needed to be smart about this.

Kenny was one of the more athletic boys, not to mention chasing down criminals is sort of his hobby. She has no chance if she just made a b-line for it; so, she would make sharp turns, sticking close to the walls only to randomly switch directions, zigzagging, jumping away from his grabs, anything to stay out of his reach. Her lungs we’re burning but she was so close, just a few more turns and she’s out.

Then suddenly: Kevin Stoley appeared from around the corner, whistling a cheery toon. She noticed him too late and slammed right into the Asian boy, nocking them both to the ground.

“Oh! Hi New Kid.” Kevin greeted as if they both weren’t on the ground right now.

_God damn it Kevin._

Instantly she scrambled on her feet and took off again but was thrown forward when a rush of orange tackled her. The two spiraled in the floor as New Kid desperately tried to weasel her way out of Kenny’s grip on her t-shirt. They both grunted as New Kid broke off, only to be dragged back by the ankle. The blond let out a strained gasp as he snaked a hand around her waist and heaved them both onto their feet before wrapping his other arm around her stomach and lifting her off the ground and over his shoulder. She yelped and kicked wildly at the air, yet it did nothing but made him tighten his grip.

“Thanks for your help Kevin.” He wheezed as he carried the flailing New Kid down the hall, gritting his teeth the entire way.

“Your Welcome!” He chirped, still on the floor.

_Motherfucker_ She hissed, flipping him the bird as Kenny carried her around the corner. _He can’t know, none of them can! Its over if they find out!_ She latched on to his arms and tried to pry open his fingers to no avail. _How can such a skinny Kid be so strong?_  

They were standing in front of a door now. New Kid didn’t care to crane her head to find out where it leads to, she just needs to gat the _fuck_ away. Kenny kicked out his leg and held it under the door handle, twisting and cursing until it clicked open. He hopped backwards until it was wide to drop New Kid and unceremoniously shove her in. She landed on a chair of some sort and was instantly stunned by the strings of LED lights hanging from the celling and the pink and blue curtains draped on the wall.

She’s in the cisgender bathroom and she’s sitting on the toilet, she realized as Kenny locked the door behind them and heaved against it.

“There,” he gasped. “No more running.” He breathed out and straightened himself to meet New Kid’s line of sight. “Now can you please just tell me wha-“ he snapped his mouth shut when he saw her face, eyes widening. She looked down, wishing to be anywhere else but here. She Needs to figure out a story right now, something believable.

Her thoughts halted as fingers gripped the sides of her head and tilted it forward, she shivered from the touch. Meeting the narrow gaze of Kenny’s blue eyes. She can’t look away, its physically impossible because she doesn’t want to break away. It made her heart pulse when his freckled face looked at her like this. Old thoughts began to rise in her head as their closeness began to sink in, thoughts of princesses, and Mysterion, and just of _him._

Thoughts she forced herself to ignore this past year, because it’s not the first time she’s become lost in his eyes.

“Dude, what did Nicole do to you?”

New Kid stiffened. Its too bad Kenny only likes girls.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts? Opinions? Concerns?


	5. It Could All Start With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She tilted her head, not quite understanding.
> 
> He glanced down at his sister to make sure she was still asleep before speaking. “Think of it as, like, sex with a hooker. Just because you came really hard in the end doesn’t deny the fact that you probably have a couple STD’s because of it.”
> 
> The New Kid blinked. Very slowly. If anything, Kenny’s example made her even more confused than before. Also, what the hell does hooker sex have to do with anything? Kenny saw her blank face and huffed.

_One year ago – 10:23 pm – DLC Bus_

The New Kid could barely keep her eyes open when she glanced away from the clock on her lock screen. Yawning, she slumped back on her seat and stared at the empty road outside of the window, hoping that the DLC bus driver would hurry up already so she can get some sleep. She was just about ready to curl up on the floor and call it a night.

Upon Karen’s insistence (and Mysterion’s protest,) they had extended their visit at Casa Bonita for some much-needed relaxation. Mysterion, Coon, Henrietta, and herself had been fighting vampires none stop since the early afternoon and never really had the chance to properly enjoy the facility. She agreed that it would be a shame to go home without having some fun (and utilizing that meal ticket she snagged from the register). Even Henrietta stuck around so she could avoid her parents. For the rest of the day the group ran around nonstop, bouncing from attraction to attraction until they were kicked out around closing time, juggling a stack of arcade prizes and boxed leftovers that now occupied the seat next to Karen.

“Your getting better.” Mysterion said out of the blue. He was sitting to her left, holding a snoozing Karen against his chest. The blond was looking down at his sister, casting his hood against the sides of his face and making his expression unreadable. “At fighting I mean.”

She hummed and unlocked her phone once more, scrolling through her contacts until she found ‘Princess Kenneth’ and typed up her response. Mysterion felt his phone buzz, already knowing it was from New Kid before he had even fished it out of his utility belt.

_‘Fighting mutated sixth graders is really good practice, I recommend it.’_

A sleepy laugh left Mysterion’s throat, making New Kid relax. It was a nice sound to hear, considering how stressed the boy was earlier today. He was significantly calmer since they saved Karen but remained tensed due to the amount of beat up vamp kids that still lingered in Casa Bonita. Although none of them really seemed interested in stepping within a twenty-foot radius of them.

His laughter died down. The silence was drowned out by Cartman’s loud snoring. She let out a sigh and looked at the sleeping boy. He was stretched across the row of seats in front of them, using a newly won plush as a pillow. She had no idea how Karen could sleep through this.

“Are you ok, New Kid?”

She blinked in surprise. That wasn’t Mysterion’s voice.

 Turning her head, she was meet with his stern gaze. The eye holes in his mask showed just enough skin for her to see the splotches of red and purple bruises forming under his lower lids, starkly contrasting his bright blue eyes. It made her go still, because it was Kenny McCormick asking her that question and not his alter ego. Swallowing, she tried to look at everything but his eyes as she wondered why he was asking with that look on his face. Did she not look ok?

“Its just that,” He paused and exhaled, forming his words. “A lot of fucked up things happened, not only in general but to you specifically and…” he frowned. “No one has really asked you if you we’re ok.”

New Kid froze, discomfort beginning to pool in her stomach when she realized he was talking about the Mitch Connor incident™. Hesitantly, she typed and sent her reply

‘Everything was fixed in the end, so why wouldn’t I be ok?’

Kenny’s frown worsened when he read her reply. “Just because everything turned out alright doesn’t really mean you’re ok.”

She tilted her head, not quite understanding.

He glanced down at his sister to make sure she was still asleep before speaking. “Think of it as, like, sex with a hooker. Just because you came really hard in the end doesn’t deny the fact that you probably have a couple STD’s because of it.”

The New Kid blinked. Very slowly. If anything, Kenny’s example made her even more confused than before. Also, what the hell does hooker sex have to do with anything? Kenny saw her blank face and huffed.

“My point is that you don’t go through that shit unscathed, Ok?” He leaned back and let out a halfhearted chuckle. “So I was just wondering how you were handling it.”

An odd feeling circled in her gut after listening to him. Memories she tried to avoid swarmed her head like rapid fire as she thought back on that night in Mephesto’s lab. The New Kid was able to just about handle everything thrown at her until her parents we’re involved. She loves them so much but its agony to remember that they once held so much hatred and malice for each other, how willing they we’re to let New Kid kill their spouse in order to save themselves. She wrapped her arms around herself and hunched forward, remembering the moment she decided that mom would never make it to town with her injuries, how she slowly took hold of her mother’s arm and gave her one last blank look.

 Her toes curled in her boots when she remembered the sickening sound of muscle snapping apart like elastic. 

What broke her from her trance was Kenny nudging her with his slim shoulder. Jolting, she let out a shaky gasp and loosened the white knuckled grip she had on her phone. Her lips parted as she blinked, suddenly feeling a rush of heat and confusion. What the actual fuck was that? Why did she feel so overwhelmed just now? It was all in the past; it never even happened according to history. So what the fuck happened to her?

Kenny also had a similar face, he was peering at New Kid slack jawed. Completely blown away by the sheer amount of expression New Kid had just showed. **New Kid** : who is infamously known for never showing a lick of emotion. It was the first time Kenny had seen something other then a poker face and it surprised the hell out of him. Too bad Kenny didn’t like this expression, at all. It didn’t sit right with him to see New Kid with a face like that.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

She typed quickly, avoiding eye contact as she tried to regain her neutral demeanor. _‘Talk about what?’_

“The reason you looked so scared right now.”

New Kid sunk into her seat, growing more flustered by the second. She doesn’t want to talk about it, she wants to forget. Talking means that she’ll experience the helplessness she felt all over again, and that feeling would only double if she explained this to another person. _What would they think?_ She wondered. _What would Kenny think?_

The New Kid squirmed in her seat from how uncomfortable that last thought was, even though she had no idea what exactly made it uncomfortable. Her eyes curiously shifted in the blonds direction, only to find him staring right back, patiently waiting for an answer. His gaze made her feel a small pang of guilt. Here he was trying to talk to her, and here she was throwing it right back into his face. But no matter what angle she looked at it: her reluctance overpowered her guilt tenfold.

 _I’m sorry Kenny,_ she thought with a weight in her chest _. But I never want to see that side of me again._

Something about her face must have told Kenny her answer because his attention only lingered for a moment before he turned back to Karen. “Ok, ok.” He said while puffing out air. “I’ll leave it.”

New Kid let out a sigh of relief, feeling the pressure begin to slowly loosen its grip.

“But ya know, if you ever want to talk about it-“

New Kid glared at him.

Kenny chuckled, not at all intimidated by her death stare. “I’ll listen to you.” He finished with a yawn as he rested his chin on the top of Karen’s head, snuggling her close. “There. I’m done, so don’t get your nuts in a twist.”

The joke made a corner of her lip twitch upwards. She was surprised at the feelings that came to her afterwards: Content, relief, possibly even a sprinkle of happiness. There were no hard feelings between them, they can just move on with life as they pleased. She liked that aspect of Kenny, how he never gets stuck on the small things.

The masked boy was nodding off, lost in a limbo of half consciousness. He sputtered awake when he felt a buzz in his hand and groggily lifted the phone to his face, blinking a few times to clear the blurriness before reading the text.

‘ _Thank you’_

Kenny looked at New Kid, his eyes widening when he saw the look on her face. She was offering him a tiny, awkward smile; but was crinkling her nose, squinting, and seemingly breaking her face in her attempt to purposely show emotion.

She really needs to practice this in the mirror when she gets home.

Immediately Kenny snorted and bursted out laughing, throwing his head back as he struggled to form coherent words out of the giggles. “Wha- what the fuck?” he inhaled as another fit racked his body. “Did you just try to smile?! Holy shit!”

New Kid’s smile grew, long forgotten reflexes shaped her face into a natural expression as she contently watched Kenny lose his shit. It was nice.

She’s not stupid to what these feelings are. Or to what they could potentially turn into. She’s also not stupid enough to believe Kenny feels the same. Real life is not like the movies; people won’t automatically be interested in you just because you like them. Especially considering that she’s “one of the guys” and not some pretty girl that can cozy up to him and call him cute. To Kenny: New Kid is the person he calls when he needs to raid a police station, or when he reluctantly needs backup, or when he needs her to pick a flower – for some reason.

Yeah, it’s not ideal, it’s not perfect; but she’ll happily take fighting Corey Haim alongside him over nothing.

Because he’s her friend.

She’ll leave it at that.

 

_Present Day_

It took every ounce of willpower she had to force herself to look casual, to make it seem as if everything was normal and the bruises on her face weren’t suspicious at all. The New Kid had an elbow propped up on the top of the toilet and was resting her head on her hand, staring down Kenny with a dull look. It would be a lot more effective if he was actually paying attention to her, but he had been occupied with reading through her bullshit excuse for several minutes now. In the meantime; he had planted himself against the door, probably to keep her from hightailing the fuck out of here.

 _Smart_ New kid thought bitterly through gritted teeth. She can’t stand how he was leisurely reading her text while she was just about ready to vomit. Her adrenaline and nerves were blending into a sickening concoction that settled in her stomach and sent waves of bile up her throat. Cringing, she swallowed and tried to relax, tried to remind herself what was at stake if she couldn’t pull through.

New Kid lifted her hand, cursing at the fact that she couldn’t stop it from trembling. She’ll lose everything. Everyone.

_But wait._

_That’s…not exactly true. Things are a little different now – and she has five new contacts in her phone to prove it._

She dug into her pocket with more force then necessary and yanked out her phone. _Relax_ she reminded herself as she opened her messenger app **_There’s still a way out of this_** _._ New Kid silently exhaled, loosened her muscles, and eased back into her previous position; looking as if she had started scrolling through Coonstagram out of boredom.

_‘SOS! Trapped in Cis bathroom with Kenny! He’s asking questions, will explain later, GET ME THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!!!                ‘_

**Sent to: Wendy, Annie, Red, Bebe, Nicole**

The New Kid had sent her message just as she heard Kenny snap his flip phone shut with an audible _click._ She slowly drifted her eyes off her screen to see the parka clad boy pinching the bridge of his nose. This tells her that she already fucked up.

“So let me get this straight.” He said while giving her a deadass stare. “You were ditching class – “ He leaned in and narrowed his eyes. “Ya know: something that you **never** do.”

 _Fucking fuck_ he already found a hole in her story. Her face flushed but her expression remained the same. The hope that someone was on their way was the only thing keeping her calm.

“When you saw Mr. Mackey and ran down the hall to try to avoid getting caught, you weren’t paying attention when you checked behind you to see if he saw and slammed right into Nicole’s locker just as she opened it. And that’s how you ended up with a busted lip.”

She nodded. Too distracted to notice the multiple buzzes coming from her phone. All she could focus on was his blue eyes.

“You wanna know how I know your lying?” Kenny said while dropping his tone.

She remained still, heart beating a mile a minute. _It’s bad but its not too late._

“if you were really ditching, then why did Red walk into our class saying you we’re absent because the coach needed you for something?” he stepped forwards and pointed a gloved finger at her. “Yeah. Don’t think people didn’t notice how weird that shit was; especially after that little disappearing act you pulled at recess.”

She had no comeback, no way to make her story makes sense. He knows somethings going on, New Kid could see it all over his face. For the second time that day she was frozen, allowing her next action to be determined by what the person in front of her does next.

“New Kid,” his voice carried sympathy as he crouched down to meet her at eyelevel. His sharp eyes locked with her half-lidded ones and for a brief moment her stomach curled. “I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s going on. All I know is that you disappear for hours then come back lookin’ like someone punched you. What the fuck am I supposed to do with that? Ignore it?”

The New kids mask cracked when her eyes went wide. She had expected him to ignore it, she had expected him to accept her excuse and brush this whole ordeal off. She realizes how stupid and selfish that sounded, how horribly she misjudged his character. Because this is Kenny McCormick she’s talking about: the big brother, the princess, the hero. Was she really so wrapped up in everything that she forgot about all of that?

He reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze and causing her to stiffen from the warmth.

“C’mon-“ He said while furrowing his brows. “For once just trust me.”

Her mouth parted, her brain stuck on his voice. The words _for once_ echoing in her head like a broken record. That’s right; she has never truly opened up to him, never accepted his help with any of her problems. She had earned his friendship but never made anything of it, never allowed it to grow. She had forced the two of them to remain stagnant when here he was: always ready to move forward while she was perfectly content standing in place.

_For once just trust me._

Maybe that’s exactly what she should of done all along. Why should she continue to hide when she’s never truly happy with how things are? Why should she continue push people away out of fear? It felt terrifying but liberation to finally have people who knew the truth. It made her feel like herself for the first time in years. How amazing would it be to feel like that around her friends?

 _And it could all start with you_.

Slowly, she stretched out her hand towards the arm he still had on her shoulder. Fingers recoiling when they brushed against the fabric of his parka before hesitantly wrapping them around his forearm. Kenny tilted his head, following the path of her arm before drifting back to New Kids wide eyes.

 _I’m a girl. Just say it._ Things can finally change if she can just **fucking** say it.

“New Kid?” Kenny breathed.

_Trust me._

She opened her mouth. “I –“

A fist pounded on the door, scaring the living shit out of the two and causing them to jolt away from each other. Immediately New Kid slapped a hand over her mouth, stopping herself from letting anything out. Panic began to surge through her veins as she watched Kenny’s eyes widen.

his jaw dropped, and his brows had disappeared under his bangs. The boys mouth opened and closed several times before he was able to speak. “Did you just…?” he trailed off when he saw that New Kid had went still. She was paralyzed with the knowledge that she was seconds away from telling him the truth and potentially ruining everything. It terrifies her: that a choice like that is in her hands.

Another round of bangs assaulted the door. Kenny groaned, rolling his eyes and turning his head to shout behind him. “Occupied, asshole!”

This only caused the person to put more force into their hits. “Open the door, McCordick!”

New kids eyes shot to the door, never thinking that she would ever be so happy to hear Bebe’s voice. She wanted to drop on her knees and thank god above for sending her this pissed off angel as her savior.

Kenny warily eyed the door before hesitantly unlocking it and opening it a crack. New kid had to restrain herself from lunging towards the sliver of hallway she could see past the door.

“Can’t a man take a shit in peace?” Kenny asked in an annoyed tone.

“Shut up.” Bebe shot out her hand, shoving him back and swinging the door open. Her expression broke out into a sickeningly sweet smile when her eyes found New Kids. “There you are!” She cheered as she rushed over and snatched her hands. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

New Kid tilted her head, thrown aback by the girl’s behavior. Bebe noticed this and discreetly winked, pulling her onto her feet. “C’mon, we better go work on our project if we want to finish before the weekend.”

Kenny’s eyes darted between the two, “What-?”

But Bebe had whirled around and was in his face in seconds. “I swear to God Kenny. If we get a shitty grade because your off molesting my project partner in the bathroom then I’m going to have a serious problem with you.” She scowled, “Do I make myself clear?”

“…Crystal.” He answered delicately.

New Kid had just enough time to snatch her bag before Bebe had grabbed her hand and yanked her out of the bathroom. Leaving her stumbling too keep up with the fuming girl. Kenny didn’t make a move to stop them.

She felt a pang of guilt for leaving Kenny like this, for once again running away. It must be tiring, to offer your help only to be ignored. How many more times will he stand for it until he stops trying? The thought made her heart drop. She just wants things to be ok, wants **him** to be ok.

God she really is smitten, isn’t she?

New Kid couldn’t help it, she risked a glance behind her shoulder. There he was, standing outside with an unreadable expression. His hood drawn over his head and his hands shoved into his pockets. “Hey,” he said when he noticed that she was looking back. The corners of his lip turned formed a small smile. “Take care of that lip, ok?”

New Kid swallowed, nodding to him just as Bebe led her around a corner. A sad smile formed on her face as they traveled through the halls.

The bell rang just the two girls left through the school’s front entrance. New Kid breathed in a sigh of relief, happy to be out of that stuffy room; even though she’s freezing without her jacket.

“Sorry we took so long,” She offered while releasing her hand. “But Wendy thought it would be a good idea to figure out a cover story to throw him off.”

She nodded, relieved that the girls took a smart approach instead of charging in guns blazing. She took out her phone saw a plethora of messages on her home screen. She decided she’ll read them all later and instead chose to type her message.

 _‘Thanks, I’m glad you did what you did. You really saved me back there.’_ She smiled and added: ‘ _Also, you’re a badass Bebe.’_

The girl giggled when she read the text, flipping her blond curls and gladly accepting the boost to her ego. “I try. Anyway, I gotta go meet up with Clyde, so I’ll see you tomorrow.” New Kid nodded as the girl began to walk off. “And don’t hesitate to text if you need us to bail you out again!”

She smiled, waiting until she was out of her line of sight before she started her walk home. No way she’s risking an encounter with Kenny on the bus, especially after that shit show. The New Kid is actually perfectly fine with this, a nice walk home might be exactly what she needs to help her think things through.

New Kid exhaled, watching as her breath clouded before disappearing into the air. She knows its impossible for things to stay the same, if anything she was only delaying the inevitable. One day she’ll slip up, and people will find out whether she likes it or not. _Fuck_ that’s a scary thought. New kid is still unsure about her feelings on the matter; she was however, sure of one thing.

_I want to make things better._

 

 

 

Eric Cartman yawned as he stretched his limbs, stopping when he heard a satisfying _pop._ Detention had been a drag, as usual. But shit writing lines had sucked the absolute life out of him, he was too tired and bored to even will himself to be pissed off. At this point the pudgy boy just wanted to face plant into his bed.

He turned when he reached his street, pausing when he saw a familiar hooded figure before sighing and walking up to the visitor.

“Go home Kenny, I’m too exhausted to play today.” He passed the blond while absentmindedly trying to dig his house key out of his sock. Kenny watched him struggle for a few seconds before speaking.

“I’m not here for that.”

“I don’t have any spare change.”

He sneered. “I’m not here for that either.”

“Then what?”

“You know all that conspiracy shit you said during recess?” he asked while walking next Cartman as he approached his front door. “About New Kid and the girls?”

“If by conspiracy you mean truth, then yes.” He finally managed to yank his key out of his sock. “Look I’m super tired right now and I’m not in the mood to hear why you don’t believe me –“

“I want to help you figure out what’s wrong with him.”

Cartman paused. “What? Seriously?” he scanned the boys face, just now noticing that his brows were drawn down and a serious expression framed his face. It made the chubby boy blink several times out of surprise.

“Some really weird stuff happened today involving New Kid, things that I think you might want to hear.”

Eric nodded, suddenly feeling awake and alive. He turned the key and opened his front door, holding it open for Kenny to walk in first.

“Why don’t we talk about this inside?” he said as grin stretched across his face. “We have much to discuss…Partner.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That took WAY too long to write. Anyways, things are going to be picking up from here on out so stay tuned.
> 
> P.S I want to thank my amazing boy friend for giving me advice for this chapter, as well as all of those who comment and kudos. you guys are the ones who inspire me me to write. :)
> 
> P.P.S Any advice for writers block?
> 
> P.P.P.S let me know how i'm doing with my portrayal of the sp characters.
> 
> *EDIT* so sorry the next chapter is talking so long. I got pretty caught up with the Holliday’s but rest assured. I don’t intend to abandon this ship. Thank you to all of those who read this, I promise I won’t leave you hanging. :)

**Author's Note:**

> First fic out, finally. I've had this idea in my head for a while so i'm glad I can put it out. It'll help with my writing skills so constructive criticism is always welcomed. My goal is to tell the New Kids story while still keeping the shows overall vibe. Lets see where this goes :)
> 
> ~LovelyEnvy


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